University  oi  lllmuis 

Library  SchooU 


6*i.n  , t't. 

The^SVand  Rapids 

Public  Library 

West  Side  Branch 

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Issued  in  connection  with  the  public 
inspection  and  the  opening  of  the 

West  Side  Branch  Library 

December  28  and  30,  1907 


IT  will  be  of  interest  to  those  who 
visit  this  branch  library  to  know 
something  of  its  history  and  equip- 
ment. The  building  was  erected  by  the 
Michigan  State  Telephone  Company  to 
be  used  as  a telephone  exchange,  but 
owing  to  a change  in  the  plans  of  the 
Company  it  was  never  fully  equipped 
for  that  purpose,  and  for  several  years 
had  been  standing  idle.  As  early  as  Jan- 
uary, 1905,  the  Board  of  library  Com- 
missioners considered  the  possibility  of 
having  the  building  for  a branch  library, 
and  the  President  of  the  Board,  the  late 
Hon.  John  Patton,  discussed  the  matter 
at  different  times  with  the  officers  of  the 
Company.  Early  in  1907  the  Telephone 
Company  offered  to  the  Library  Board  the 
use  of  the  building  for  library  purposes 
exclusively  for  a term  of  years  ending 
February  1,  1924,  on  condition  that  the 
city  maintain  the  building,  pay  the 
special  and  other  taxes  which  may  be 
assessed  against  it,  and  provide  for  fire 
insurance,  the  Company  reserving,  how- 
ever, the  right  to  maintain  a telephone 
booth  in  the  building.  This  offer  was 
in  the  form  of  a lease  which,  under  the 
provision  of  the  City  Charter,  was  made 
with  the  Board  of  Education,  inasmuch 
as  that  Board  holds  the  title  to  all  library 
property. 

The  matter  of  providing  funds  for  in- 
surance, street  improvement  taxes,  and 
fitting  up  the  building  was  referred  to 
the  Common  Council,  which,  at  its  meet- 


ing  on  March  25,  1907,  authorised  a 
special  appropriation  of  $2,115  for  this 
purpose.  The  lease  with  the  Telephone 
Company  was  authorized  and  signed  by 
the  Board  of  Education  at  its  meeting  on 
April  2.  The  bringing  about  of  this 
lease  on  such  satisfactory  terms  for  the 
city  was  largely  due  to  the  efforts  of  Mr. 
Dudley  E.  Waters,  vice-president  of  the 
Telephone  Company. 

As  soon  as  the  lease  was  effected,  plans 
were  begun  for  the  remodeling  of  the 
building,  its  equipment  for  library  pur- 
poses and  the  purchase  of  books  to  stock 
the  library.  All  this  work,  together  with 
a considerable  amount  of  repairs,  is  now 
completed  and  ready  for  inspection.  The 
plans  involved  the  endeavor  to  use  every 
available  inch  for  seating  readers  or  for 
the  shelving  of  books.  With  the  work- 
ing out  of  the  plans  it  was  found  advis- 
able to  add  several  important  features 
which  were  not  included  on  the  original 
estimate  for  the  equipment  of  the  build- 
ing, As  a result  of  this,  the  cost  has 
been  several  hundred  dollars  more  than 
the  original  estimate.  The  most  impor- 
tant of  these  additions  are  the  glass  parti- 
tion and  the  double  rows  of  shelving 
which  divide  the  two  reading  rooms  and 
the  placing  of  cork  carpet  on  the  floor. 

The  number  of  books  upon  the  open 
shelves  is  not  as  great  as  was  hoped, 
owing  to  the  fact  that  two  additional  new 
branch  libraries  were  stocked  and  started 
this  year.  However,  there  are  at  this 


3 0112  072367078 


date  about  2,000  volumes  on  the  shelves 
and  a large  number  of  volumes  have  been 
ordered  to  be  purchased  as  fast  as  the 
funds  of  the  library  will  permit. 

Fifty  current  periodicals  for  the  read- 
ing room  have  been  ordered  for  1908. 
This  list  includes  a wide  range  of  subjects, 
and  represented  in  it,  in  addition  to 
English,  are  periodicals  in  the  Holland, 
German  and  Polish  languages. 

Nearly  all  the  books  are  for  circula- 
tion, and  anyone  who  now  has  a card  to 
draw  books  from  the  Grand  Rapids 
Public  Library  can  take  books  from  this 
branch.  Cards  are  good  to  draw  books 
from  the  Ryerson  Library  building  and 
from  any  of  the  branches,  provided  the 
books  already  drawn  be  returned  to  the 
library  from  which  they  were  taken . The 
rules  with  reference  to  the  issue  of  books 
are  the  same  as  at  the  Ryerson  Library 
building.  The  citizens  on  the  West  Side 
can  use  the  Ryerson  building  the  same 
as  heretofore,  and  likewise  anyone  in 
any  part  of  the  city  can  use  the  West 
Side  Branch. 

The  library  will  be  open  every  week 
day  from  12:30  until  9 p.  m.,  except  on 
Saturdays,  when  it  will  be  open  from  8:30 
a.  m.  to  9 p.  m.  On  Sundays  and  holi- 
days, except  Christmas  and  the  Fourth 
of  July,  it  will  be  open  from  2 to  6 p.  m. 
The  hours  of  opening  may  be  changed  in 
the  future  should  other  hours  seem  de- 
sirable. The  building  can  seat  about 
100  readers. 


